


Believing is Only The Beginning

by furyofthetimelords



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - FBI, Alternate Universe - X-Files Fusion, Blogging, Case Fic, F/M, FBI Agent Barry Allen, Gen, Implied/Referenced Medical Experimentation, Journalism, Mostly Gen, Original Character(s), Social Media
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-04-24 03:26:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4903810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/furyofthetimelords/pseuds/furyofthetimelords
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As the anonymous blogger 'ReportingWest', Iris is all about discovering the truth. So when a young woman mysteriously burns to death and the media is eerily silent about the matter, Iris takes it on herself to uncover the truth. </p><p>Meanwhile, FBI Agent Barry Allen is put onto the case, following a lead on an old unsolved X-File. </p><p>Determined to get closer to the truth, Iris and Barry are drawn together and uncover a truth that's bigger than either of them could have imagined. </p><p>[Written for <a href="http://theflashbigbang.tumblr.com">The Flash Big Bang 2015</a>]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Believing is Only The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> There's a lot of people to thank for the process of making this fic. Firstly, there's the lovely mods who run The Flash Big Bang for organising this thing because without it I don't think this fic would've been written anytime soon. Then, there's the lovely Atia (aka [spaceboundtrout](http://spaceboundtrout.tumblr.com) on tumblr) who made the lovely watercolour art at the end of this fic (it's so great). And finally [Raven](http://evermorestoned.tumblr.com) who helped with the Beta-reading side of things and helped me shape this fic. 
> 
> On reading this fic, please pay close attention to the dates on the documents (which, sidenote, I've tried to make look as accurate as I can), they're pretty important to the chronology of the fic (as I do jump around between docs from 1993 and 2014).

**U.S DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE**

 

Bureau File No: X-011940

 

 

FIELD OFFICE CRIMINAL AND INVESTIGATIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE FILES

 

 

 

 

**CENTRAL CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT**

 

POLICE REPORT

Case no: 1052S-45Q

Date: 9.10.1993

Reporting Officer: David Lampert

Prepared by: Graham Garrick

 

Incident: Death, Arson.

 

Detail:

On 9-10-1993, I received a report of a domestic dispute at 2100 hours from the Greenwood Apartment Complex in Apartment 3B (Address: 23 Garrison Street).  When Officer Lampert and I arrived at the scene, the blaze had burned out and fire services had discovered a charred body in the apartment. According to neighbours, the woman in the apartment was a Yolanda Nelson, 23.

Action Taken:

Detectives were called to the scene and the building was put on lockdown as the investigation commences. The body was sent to the morgue and dental records will be used to confirm its identity.

//

_JULY 2014_

**CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 2m

Mayor discusses re-election and plans for city: cent.rl/5b357

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 1m

S.T.A.R Labs director Harrison Wells talks the future & particle accelerators: cent.rl/6V34Hb

 **REPORTING WEST** @Report_West – 30s

Is anyone going to talk about the woman who died last night? Just me it seems: bt.yl/Q78b1 #GetRealNews #HarriettParker

//

_WOMAN DIES IN APARTMENT FIRE_

7/13/2014 @ 17:35

Posted by: ReportingWest

The story I’m about to tell you sounds impossible, but if you’re smart, you’ll know it’s the truth.

You see that title? Bet you didn’t see any of _that_ on the news today. You’d think it might make a headline, or maybe even a passing mention _somewhere_. But I can guarantee you that no news outlet in the city will say a word about it. Why? Because they don’t want you to know what happened.

So, what makes such a story worth covering up? Well, I’m here to tell you now.

Her name was Harriett Parker. She was just another young woman in Central City, with a life to live and a job to work. Nothing about her seems to be all that special.

But then last night, she died in a fire. It wasn’t just a regular apartment fire, though I’m sure as soon as I post this, someone out there will say it was. They don’t want you to know this.

The fire itself didn’t look like it had any kind of spark – there was a strange lack of fire hazards around the place. No sign of faulty electrics, or even a curtain too close to the stove. In fact, the entire building went through a safety overhaul just months before.  

So how did Harriett end up burning to death? Well, that’s the mystery.

I think it was murder. In fact, this isn’t the first case where someone in Central City has died under strange, almost unexplainable circumstances. There’s so many of them, and all of it just gets swept under a rug. As if it’s that easy to hide the fact that people out there are _dying_ in ways nobody explaining.

But that’s going to change. I created this blog to expose the truth, and it seems there’s a whole lot of truth that needs to be told.

-ReportingWest

PS. You can find some of my photos of the crime scene here, but be warned, they aren’t for the faint of heart.

 

COMMENTS (23)

Art73 (July 13 2014 at 17:36)

How can we be sure you didn’t make this up? Photoshop is pretty easy to use.

Betty-B (July 13 2014 at 17:38)

I can’t believe nobody else is talking about it. I live near that apartment block!

Green_2315 (July 13 2014, at 17:45)

This sounds crazy, y’know? Conspiracies aren’t everywhere.

Paper_Heart_410 (July 13, 2014, at 18:05)

Don’t worry ReportingWest! I believe you. It’s about time someone started to pay attention to what’s going on in this city.

(See more comments)

//

Though Iris had nearly been arrested twice the first time she went to the scene of Harriett Parker’s death, that hadn’t stopped her from going back again.  

The whole incident had been bothering her, and she itched to be able to get one more look at the scene, especially now that the cops had cleared out. Iris knew it was a long shot; there was probably nothing left to find, but she wasn’t going to take the chance there might have been something the police had missed. Besides, most of what she was looking for wasn’t the kind of things cops would take a notice of. She wanted to know who Harriett Parker was. How this could’ve happened to someone like her. There were so many questions, and Iris would be damned if she let them go unanswered.

The building looked pretty much the same as it had the last time she’d been here, though there was a distinct lack of cops. Iris took a deep breath. _I’ve done this before, I can damn well do it again_ , she told herself before walking calmly past the building before ducking quietly into the alleyway along the side of the building. 

With a quick glance over her shoulder, Iris walked over to the door and began to pick the lock. It was over in a moment and she went inside. Hard part done. Now, it was only a matter of being able to get to the actual apartment. From what she’d been able to gather on her trip here yesterday, the crime scene was covered in tape and residents in most of the apartments around it had been shuttled off to motels while they wait out the repairs.

As she slipped past the tape and into the place where Harriett Parker died, Iris took in the scene again and tried not to throw up. It was easier than before, now that the body was gone and the people here had cleared out. At least, that part was.

The room might have been void of the body, but there were still so many reminders of the girl who once lived here. There were half-charred photos, burnt-out books and twisted piles of plastic and metal that had fused together from the heat of the blaze.

Once again, Iris wondered how on earth it had gotten this bad. As far as she could determine, nobody had found any trace of accelerants, at least not yet. It was as of this fire had just _happened_.

As she looked around at what remained of Harriett Parker's apartment, Iris suddenly felt uncomfortable being inside of it. She needed to get out of here. Quickly, but quietly, she exited the room and shut the door carefully and all but sprinted down the corridor. Thankfully, nobody seemed to be around and Iris started to relax, walking slower and more casually, as if she was just another tenant in the building.

“Miss?” a voice called out. Iris froze where she stood.

“Sorry, miss, can I just have a moment of your time?” the voice asked again. Iris took a deep breath and smoothed over her expression. _Relax_ , she told herself before she turned around to face her interrupter, surprised to see a man in a suit. He didn’t look much older than her, maybe even the same age.

“I’m sorry, I need to get going,” she said, flashing an apologetic smile to the guy.

“I’m afraid I can’t let you, I’ll only be a moment,” the guy said and flashed what was clearly an FBI badge. Iris felt a flash of worry. Maybe she’d gotten in too deep here.

“What can I do for you then?” she asked.

“I just need to ask a few questions. You’re a resident here?”

Iris shook her head. “No, I was coming in for a friend,” she replied. “They wanted me to pick up a few things, but I couldn’t find them.”

“Which apartment?”

Iris shrugged and waved a hand behind her. “A few doors down. So, this is about the dead girl, isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” the agent replied. “We’re investigating a number of possibilities.”

Iris wanted to say, _like murder_ , but she held her tongue. A question like that would tip this guy off, and there was no way she was going to let him know anything. She wasn’t going to get arrested, not tonight. Though it would probably have made for an interesting experience, she knew it would only set her back if the police were watching her, or worse, the FBI. The last thing she needed was Feds on her back.  

“Like what?” she asked, adding the right amount of worry into her tone.

“I don’t think I can talk much about it now,” the agent said smoothly.

“Well, I’m sorry I can’t help Agent—?”

“Allen, he replied and held out a hand.

“Well, Agent Allen, it was nice to meet you, but I really do need to go now, sorry,” she replied with an apologetic smile, neatly avoiding giving out her own name.

Agent Allen pulled a card out of his pocket. “Well take this and let me know if your friends can find some time to talk to me,” he said with a smile. It was kind of cute.

Iris took the card, smiled and walked off and didn’t dare too look back. She hoped he wouldn’t realise he didn’t get her name.

 _That was too close_ , she thought to herself. She’d have to work on better excuses next time. Hopefully he wouldn’t think much about her later. She wasn’t too worried though; her blog wasn’t something people could easily trace back to her. She’d made sure of that, with some handy assistance from her friend and hacker Felicity.

Still, the encounter lingered in her mind, and she resolved to write a post about it later. If the FBI was involved, then there must be something serious going on. They didn’t just turn up for any old crime. If they were here, then it meant something.

 _Well, I can’t stop digging now_ , she told herself. _There’s a real story here_.

//

 

 

**INVESTIGATIVE REPORT**

OFFENCE / INVESTIGATION: Death Investigation, Arson

VICTIM (S): Parker, Harriett

CASE NUMBER # 3462N-48B

Date: 7/13/2014

PG: 1 / 1

I arrived at 23 Doggett Road and into Apartment 4B on the 14th of July, after I received the news about the crime at 0800 hours on 7/13/2014.

The body was found in the apartment, in the middle of the living room, far away from the kitchen, where many typical fire hazards are found. I found no sign of fire accelerants at the scene, nor a source of the blaze that could account for the damage caused.

However, witnesses report hearing noises of distress prior to the blaze and an unknown man existing the building.

 

INVESTIGATOR: Det. E. Thawne

 

//

 

 

**CENTRAL CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT**

 

**AUTOPSY REPORT**

Date: 9/10/1993

I performed an autopsy on the body of Yolanda Nelson at the DEPARTMENT OF CORONER Central City, Missouri on SEPTEMBER 10, 1993 @ 0800 HOURS.

From the anatomic findings and pertinent history, I ascribe the death to:

SEVER BODILY BURNS

 

23-Year-Old female burned to death in her apartment. Pronounced dead at the scene. 

The body is blackened and almost indistinguishable. Dental records were used to identify the body as Yolanda Nelson.

Body appears to have been engulfed in flame, though there is no presence of kerosene or other accelerants, even unusual ones.

//

 “So, you’re _sure_ it’s not spontaneous combustion?” Cisco asked, pausing a moment from his frantic typing at whatever project he was working on.

Caitlin rolled her eyes. “No. That doesn’t happen to people,” she replied. As both a medical examiner and FBI agent, Caitlin Snow was a specialist on such circumstances. It was exactly why Barry was so pleased to have her as a part of his team.  Well that, and before she’d joined the X-Files, she was perhaps the only agent who never questioned when he needed a strange sample analysed and knew exactly how to keep it quiet when needed.

“That we know of,” Cisco replied pointedly. “Come on, Barry, back me up here.”

Barry smiled and shook his head at his friends. “No, I’ve never found anything on it in any of my files.”

“Well, maybe this is the first! You could unlock a whole new scientific frontier here!” Cisco said excitedly. Though Cisco Ramon was much more of a mechanical engineer, and general tech expert, he never failed to get excited about the prospects of new biological discoveries.

The three of them were an odd team, he knew. He’d initially gone into the FBI alone, without a partner or anyone else to back him up. This had of course hadn’t helped anything, especially not after he began his work on the X-Files, a project he’d created himself to look at alternative explanations for cold cases. Now however, he had Caitlin and Cisco, who were his best friends – people he trusted before anyone else.

“But what about those other cases?” Caitlin asked.

“I think there’s a link there,” Barry said confidently. “I wouldn’t have come out here otherwise.”

“You practically ran out here, man,” Cisco said with a laugh.

“There was a lead,” Barry said. “I needed to follow it.”

“Is it another X-File?” Caitlin asked.

“Yeah,” Barry admitted. “One from ‘93. This crime scene is almost identical.”

“No shit,” Cisco said, wide-eyed.

“Well, this certainly makes everything a lot more interesting,” Caitlin replied and scribbled down the last of her notes on the autopsy report. She didn’t seem pleased, but Barry couldn’t blame her. More often than not, their work got complicated – mostly thanks to people who would have liked to see the X-Files shut down. But that didn’t mean Caitlin wasn’t in for it – in fact, she was a key reason as to why this whole project was still going strong. Both her and Cisco were. Without the both of them, he’d be stuck in square one.

 _Good luck to us_ , Barry thought, looking down at his pile of paperwork.

//

 **CENTRAL CITY NEWS** @3CNews – 5m

Today’s top stories: cent.rl/6h57c

 **CENTRAL CITY NEWS** @3CNews – 2m

Traffic Update - Garrison Street closed & minor delays over the eastbound freeway. Read More: cent.rl/6h57c

 **REPORTING WEST** @Report_West – 1m

Here’s the update on #HarriettParker - bt.yl/Q78b1

 **NORMAN JONES** @Jones_Norman – 23s

@Report_West why are you even reporting on this?? It’s not news.

 **REPORTING WEST** @Report_West – 30s

@Jones_Norman so long as the truth is out there, I’m looking #HarriettParker

//

_THE INVESTIGATION HEATS UP_

7/15/2014 @ 17:45

Posted by: ReportingWest

(In case you missed it before, here is my original post on Harriett Parker. If you’re new here, you might want to read that first)

I didn’t quite expect the response that post got, but I’m glad all of you paying attention. That’s good. Maybe if enough of you out there see this, things can change.

So, I went back to Harriett’s apartment complex yesterday. I just had to check if there was something else there; I can’t stop thinking that there may have been something I missed.

But anyway, that’s not so important here. What’s important is that the FBI of all people turned up on this case. Which is weird, right? This has to mean _something_.

If the FBI is here, then this can’t be an ordinary case. And I intend to find out exactly what it is. Why is the death of this girl so important? Was it really an accident or did someone set this up?

Well, whatever the truth may be, I’ll find it – that I can promise you. This city deserves to know the truth, to see with its own eyes what’s going on right in their neighbourhoods and streets.

-ReportingWest

 

COMMENTS (20)

Art73 (July 15 2014 at 17:55)

This is still complete bullshit. I can’t believe you think you can just string it along like this. People will see you’re a liar.

  Reply from: Paper_Heart_410 (July 15 2014, 18:24)

  You should stop being so rude. ReportingWest is doing their job!

    Reply From Art73 (July 15 2014 at 18:26)

    What Job?

      (See more replies)

Betty-B (July 15 2014 at 18:15)

FBI! God, I need to move. This city doesn’t feel safe anymore.

Julie15 (July 15, 2014, at 18:19)

Holy shit. I just caught up on your other posts, and wow. This sounds so intense. I almost don’t want to believe it, but my cousin knew a guy who lived in an apartment where something like this happened. It’s kind of freaky, huh? I feel like I’m living history.

Paper_Heart_410 (July 15, 2014, at 18:23)

FBI?? Oh my god. Please stay safe, ReportingWest! I don’t want you to get arrested or anything. How would you be able to anything then? Not that I think you’re helpless, but I know it’s probably a lot harder to be an investigator from jail.

(See more comments)

//

Barry couldn’t sleep; this wasn’t a particularly unusual occurrence, but it was a frustrating one. He knew the job was supposed to be taxing – there’d been enough information sessions on trauma to last him a lifetime when he was in the academy. But that didn’t mean he was immune – far from it, actually. The faces of the dead were never far from his thoughts.

To combat this, he usually spent it researching, or scribbling down case notes, trying to put the pieces together. Tonight, however, he found himself scrolling through the Internet, checking news feeds from various Central City newspapers, noting the distinct lack of mentions of the fire at Harriett Parker’s apartment. He wondered why – normally there were people all over a case like this. More than once, he’d been forced to go in undercover just to avoid the throng of hungry journalists.

Maybe the police had a reason, though they certainly hadn’t said much about it to him. Not that particularly appreciated his involvement anyway – Central City seemed to be a city that prided itself on having a police force that worked. They seemed to believe they didn’t need any involvement from anyone else for a simple murder.

They were, of course, polite people, but Barry could tell when he wasn’t exactly welcome. They didn’t like him here, mostly because of what it meant: that they were probably out of their depth.

Barry knew they thought it might’ve been mafia-related, with the way he’d had so suddenly arrived and taken over the case. There was probably some kind of betting pool going on this.

But Barry didn’t think it was anything a simple as gang-related activity. In fact, Barry thought it was a little beyond the realm of normal – the way it was with all the cases he worked in the X-Files. He liked to think he was doing the work nobody else dared to, when it was probably that nobody wanted cases with dead ends and endless paperwork. But though it was hard, he ploughed through it all, determined to find answers.

Despite what people would assume of an FBI agent, Barry wholly believed in the so-called ‘impossible’. He had since he was a child, on the night of his mother’s murder. The story had been extremely public, splashed all over the news and sensationalised, mostly because Barry’s father, a prominent doctor, was thought to have committed the crime.

Barry thought it was a lot less simple than the media or police believed.  He knew that someone, or maybe _something_ had been responsible for this. While he had been a child, it was hard to forget the events of that night. Even now, if he closed his eyes and thought about it, the memories would still be clear as day.  

The first thing he remembered was the light. Some kind of blinding flash, and his mother’s screams that echoed through the whole house. Then it all vanished, his mother and the light never to be seen again.

The police were sure his mother had died, and that his father had hidden the body. For weeks, the investigation went on, before they found a body in a field just outside of town that was supposed to be Nora Allen. There wasn’t much left of it to identify, just bones.

After that, they were pretty quick to arrest his father for the murder. It wasn’t the most conclusive evidence, but it was certainly enough to convict his father. Henry Allen, now stripped of his title as doctor permanently, was now serving a lifetime sentence in Iron Heights.

Barry hadn’t seen his father in over a decade now, partly because no one would let him, and partly because he wanted to make it look like he had cut ties with his father. He knew the FBI might not likely warm up to the fact he was close with a convicted killer. It was easier that way, to get into their ranks. Not so much for him, though. He missed his father – missed the man he’d been before his mother died.

It was his whole reason for taking on the X-Files – the kind of job that nobody else wanted, let alone _requested_. Barry was sure there was some kind of answer there; that in the depths of all these unsolved or unexplainable cases, there was the Truth. It was all he ever wanted – to be able to give his father justice, and prove that there was more to all of it than met the eye.

Most of the time, it felt like a childish dream, something he was clinging a little too tightly to, but sometimes he got lucky. In between all the vague explanations and outright fakes, there was something _else_. He’d seen things with his own eyes that couldn’t be explained by any other means but paranormal, things he believed held the key to his mother’s disappearance and eventual death.

To make it even worse, people generally liked to look down on his work. In fact, most people mocked him for his work, calling him Agent Alien behind his back (or sometimes to his face, if they were feeling particularly spiteful). They just didn’t respect the importance of what he was doing, never mind that he’d closed more cold cases than most agents ever would. His actual skills seemed to be forgotten about in favour of focusing on his openness for the paranormal.  

Barry sighed and picked up the file again, looking over the old police reports and witness statements. It was eerie, how smoothly these cases matched up. He wondered if the same person or people were responsible – that maybe this could be a serial killer. It was a morbid thought, but it would’ve been an explanation.

At any rate, the serial killer theory was as good as any.

 _Better than anything else this can tell me_ , he thought, glancing over the original police report. It was such a short, simple document. At first glance, it could’ve been a petty theft, or some other mundane crime. But there was so much more to it than that.

Now, it was all a matter of trying to figure out what exactly that _more_ was.

//

**WITNESS STATEMENT**

 

LOCATION: Central City Police Department

DATE: 11-09-1993

TIME: 10:25 A.M.

CASE #: 1052S-45Q

NAME (last, first, MI): Chambers, Jessie

 

[BEGIN TRANSCRIPT]

I, JESSIE CHAMBERS, want to make the following statement:

This is, to the best of my knowledge and recollection, which I think to be accurate.  So, as you know I live in that apartment complex, 23 Garrison Street, in apartment 2A. It’s usually a pretty good place, y’know? Nothing bad ever happens and when something seems a little odd, it stands out. Well, the point is that when I was visiting Beverly in 3C last week, I saw a man loitering around her apartment, all scary looking. He was pretty all, and well built, like some kind of solider. Like, he was pretty strong looking, you know? I’m not sure how old he was, but he didn’t look much older than Yolanda. (Pause) Yes, Yolanda Nelson.

So, I got there and I really didn’t mean to snoop, but I could hear them talking, and they were yelling about something? A project maybe – it seemed important to the man. Yolanda slammed the door in his face. She never did look like the type to take shit from anyone.

And that’s all I saw. Next thing I know Yolanda is (sobs) dead. I’m sorry. This is just so hard. But that’s it. That’s all I know.

[END TRANSCRIPT]

Signed:

J. Chambers

//

_NUMEROUS DEATHS LINKED TO APARTMENT FIRE KILLER_

7/18/2014 @ 20:33

Posted by: ReportingWest

So, it’s been a few days, but in my defence, I’ve been doing some research. And what I’ve found is almost too hard to believe. But, as I’ve said before, it’s the truth. You only need to dig a little to find it out.

The Harriett Parker case isn’t a solitary event. There’s more to it. Other people have died like her, in apartment fires that make no sense. And they’re not just in Central City. There’s so many more.

I’ve found fifteen already, and from the looks of things, there’s more. I can’t believe nobody has noticed this before. How could people not see so many people dying like this?

How did I figure this out? Well, there was a case from September 1993 that caught my eye in the library. It was a short piece, just a letter-to-the-editor thing where a citizen is complaining about the road delays thanks to an apartment fire. It was in the local bulletin, nothing of importance, really. But there wasn’t a single article about this supposed fire.

Then I dug into the police archives. There’s a record of it there, but there’s barely any follow up. No conclusion to the case. It’s just dropped. Or maybe, the rest is classified beyond what I can reach.

You might thing I’m reaching for something that might not exist, but that the thing isn’t it? There might be something here, and I owe it to everyone to find the truth.

-ReportingWest

COMMENTS (28)

Paper_Heart_410 (July 18 at 20:37)

More cases?? Oh my god. This is getting kind of scary. I hope you stay safe!

Art73 (July 18 2014 at 20:55)

This is all just speculation. There’s nothing more here than paranoia. Get a real job.

Scarlett1984 (July 18 at 20:55)

This is really insightful. I think I might take a look into this too.

Julie15 (July 18 at 21:00)

And just when I didn’t think it could get any stranger…

Betty-B (July 18 at 21:04)

More of them! Goodness, not even my friends are safe! I was thinking about moving, and to know nowhere is safe… I guess I’ll have to stay in Central City.

(See more comments)

//

Though it was only a minimum-wage job and hardly a proper career, Iris did enjoy plenty of aspects of working in a coffee place such as Jitters. The endless amount of coffee and gossip that floated around was more than enough to make the job bearable.

Not to mention it did make her side and (hopefully) future full-time career of investigative journalism a little easier. There was really nobody to ask prying questions about what she was doing outside of or some boss breathing down her neck so long as she made her shifts and did what she was paid to do. 

Today, however, the job was wearing on her. After dealing with a nightmare of a customer who didn’t seem to understand the concept that coffee actually takes _time_ , she was more than done with her work.

“Welcome to Jitters, what can I get you?” she asked as brightly as she could to the next customer in the door, barely looking up from the register.

“A large coffee please – takeaway, thanks,” said the customer and Iris looked up, surprised that she recognised the voice. It was the FBI agent again, standing right there in the shop, smiling at her.

“Sure,” she said. “Anything else?”

She didn’t miss the way he not so subtly checked her out. She’s flattered – he’s not actually a bad looking guy, and it has been a while since she’s been on a date. “No,” he replied. “Not right now. I’m on the job – well, sort of. I mean it’s a little hectic. I have a schedule”

He’s a little awkward now; far removed from the professional façade he’d given her when they first met. Iris just smiles at him – it’s kind of endearing to see, like watching a puppy.

“Alright then,” she said. “That’ll be five-fifty.”

Barry hands over the cash, and then goes off to wait for his coffee. Iris hands the order on to the barista and goes to take the next customer’s order, but she’s still half-paying attention to Barry. Why didn’t she try to talk to him more? She could’ve got something out of him.

Annoyed, Iris sighed, but then as she’s scribbling down his name on the cup, she adds her phone number too. She wonders if he’ll actually call it. Iris kind of hopes he will.

 _It could be interesting_ , she thought, looking back over at him.

//

**Harriett Parker**

July 10 at 7:36pm

Can’t believe the day I’ve had! What a mess – feeling exhausted

Like – Comment – Share

Carly Jones, Wesley Fox and 12 others like this

**Harriett Parker**

July 4 at 7:36pm

Happy Fourth!! God Bless America!! :) – at _The Silver Club_

Like – Comment – Share

53 people like this

 

**Harriett Parker**

July 1 at 6:00am

Early morning runs are the best things – feeling refreshed

Like – Comment – Share

Katy Martin, Xander Collins-Parker, Marie Oaks and 5 others like this

 

**Carly Jones**

June 28at 8:36pm

Out with my girls! :) – with Harriett Parker, Melissa Jones and 4 more at _The Silver Club_

Like – Comment – Share

Vera Kay, Penny Black, Bart Johnson and 35 others like this

 **Harriett Parker** Thanks for such a great night Carly!

   Like – Reply – June 29 10:34am

 

**Harriett Parker**

June 26 at 6:20am

The sunrise here so amazing! I’m in love.

Like – Comment – Share

Marlene Vaughn, Wilson Greene, Vera Kay and 10 others like this

 **Marlene Vaughn** Post a pic! Where are you? I need to go there.

   Like – Reply – June 26 at 7:34am

 **Harriett Parker** I’m at work. I can’t take a photo, but it’s somewhere cool. ;)

   Like – Reply – June 26 at 7:52am

 

**Harriett Parker**

April 25 at 4:50pm

I got a new job!! – feeling excited

Like – Comment – Share

Carly Jones, Melissa Jones, Penny Black and 37 others like this

//

Facebook had never been Iris’s thing, but she was seriously appreciating it now – Harriett Parker’s account was a goldmine of information. It never ceased to amaze Iris at how much people put on their profiles, oblivious to the fact that it was one easy hack away from being discovered by anyone.

Harriett, according to her Facebook page, was an open book. It seemed the girl like to post almost every day, broadcasting her thoughts to the world. But the real goldmine was in her pictures. Most of them were selfies, taken in various places around the city, but one photo stood out to her.

It was some innocuous sunrise, posted a few days after a supposed new job. Though she’d never personally been there, she knew it was taken near the military base just outside of Central City, the kind of place you didn’t get into if you didn’t work at the base, or at least have some kind of proper access (and that only came from proper clearance).

Something about the timing of the photo told her it couldn’t be a coincidence. And of course, there was only one way to find out – more hacking. She’d made a point to learn how to do it, especially considering the kind of stories she wanted to tell. You couldn’t write a piece without the relevant information, and sometimes that meant going into places that weren’t exactly open source.

This time, she had her sights set on getting into the military database. There had to be something there with Harriett’s name on it, especially if she’d been there. Iris had a feeling about this. There was _something_ here and all that was left to do was dig a little deeper.

//

Barry likes to think he’s gotten good at scanning documents in his time at the FBI. After all, it’s pretty much most of what he does - if he can’t find the files to support it, he usually has no chance at going out in the field for a case. However, that didn’t mean he liked it. The whole process was boring, and it often meant being cooped up in a room for hours on end until his brain zoned out completely.

“Need any help there?” a voice asked. Barry blinked and looked up from the pile of paper to see Detective Eddie Thawne standing there. They’d interacted earlier in the week when Barry had arrived to see the body of Harriett Parker. Eddie had been the first cop at the scene, and one of the nicer cops in the department. His partner, Joe West, hadn’t said much to Barry at all.

“I’m fine,” Barry said. “This is actually ninety per cent of my job.”

“So it’s not all like the movies?”

“It’s like being a regular cop, only more suits.”

“You don’t look like the cop type.”

“Oh, I wasn’t a cop before this,” Barry said. “I joined almost straight out of school.”

Eddie looked surprised. Barry didn’t blame him – it wasn’t something people usually did.

“Well, I’m impressed,” Eddie replied. “Not many people do that.”

“I did, but that doesn’t mean I can escape the paperwork,” Barry joked, picking up a stack of files he was yet to go through.

“Are you sure you don’t want an extra set of eyes? It might help,” Eddie offered again.

Barry considered it a moment. “It might help. Maybe I can get home before midnight tonight.”

Eddie sat down beside him and picked up half the stack of papers. “So, what are we going through?” he asked.

“The victim’s medical records, mostly. I figured there might be something in here.”

“Any luck so far?”

“Nothing,” Barry said. “But I’m optimistic.”

“Have you checked out the insurance provider?” Eddie asked as he flipped a page.

“Huh?”

“They’re military. A buddy of mine is on the same kind of plan,” Eddie said, tapping at a page.

“You sure?” Barry asked, looking down at the name: Ironwood Heights Medical. He wrote it down and sent a text to Cisco to look it up. Cisco responded with a series of thumbs up emojis.

“Absolutely,” Eddie replied. “And between you and me, it’s a sort of fake company they’re using here. It’s a cover for people who can’t always be publicly identified on military record.”

Barry mulled this over. “It’s worth a look. Thanks, Eddie.”

//

**MEDICAL INSURANCE FORM INVOICE**

INSURANCE COMPANY NAME: Ironwood Heights Medical

ADDRESS: 235 Jay Place, Central City, 710214

INVOICE NO. 057326473

DATE OF INVOICE: 4.28.2014

CUSTOMER INFORMATION:

NAME: Parker, Harriett Dana

ADRESSS: 23 Doggett Road, Apt. 4B, Central City 14207

POLICY NUMBER:  2017-5737

//

“The military are involved,” Barry announced with a sigh when he met up with Cisco and Caitlin.

“Seriously?” Cisco said, a little excitedly. “Does that mean you’ll let me try and hack their database? Because I’m sure I can do that.”

“Are you sure we should be looking into this now?” Caitlin asked. “I mean, it’s probably not good if we piss off another branch of government. They already don’t like us.”

“I’ll try and call them first before we do anything else. I don’t want to piss them off. Again,” Barry said.

“You _had_ to sneak into that base, didn’t you?” Caitlin said to Barry, with a roll of her eyes, referring to one of his more notorious investigations in which he’d discovered some kind of strange craft locals thought was a UFO, which turned out to be some kind of advanced military glider. That’s when the Agent Alien nickname had really caught on.

“That was one time,” Barry complained.

“It was reckless,” Caitlin replied. “I don’t want you to risk yourself. You know we can’t afford that.”

“Dude, it was totally cool and you know it. Besides, I’ve been dying to try out the military firewalls,” Cisco added.

“I’ll call them first. If we get no answer, then we’ll try... other methods”

“At least you’re making an effort this time,” Caitlin said with a roll of her eyes. “I’m not going to keep covering for you if this starts to get into illegal territory again.”

Barry smiled. Caitlin often made a show of protesting their less-than-conventional methods, but she was always right there with them when it came down to it. She understood the work, and sometimes a little more than he did, with her vast medical knowledge and practical mind.

“Hey, we always make an effort,” Cisco shot back.

“Tell that to the last time we did this.”

“Hey—that’s not fair!” Cisco protested.

Barry rolled his eyes and went out to make the call.

//

“Hello?”

“Hey, this is Special Agent Allen from the FBI, badge number XF58 85697 I’m calling about a request for visitation in regards to an investigation I’m conducting.”

“I’m afraid that isn’t possible at this time.”

“Sorry?”

“Visitors aren’t allowed into the base at this time. Nor can any members of staff be contacted by anyone without the proper clearance.”

“I’m afraid this is urgent. I’m conducting an investigation into the death of someone who was linked to this base, a Harriett Parker—”

“I’m sorry, I can’t help you. Have a good day, Agent Allen.”

 

//

>REQUEST: SEARCH: HARRIETT PARKER

>DENIED

>REQUEST: SEARCH: PARKER

>DENIED

>REQUEST: SEARCH: HARRIETT

>DENIED

>REQUEST: APARTMENT FIRE

>DENIED

>REQUEST: SEARCH: ARSON APARTMENT

>REQUEST: SEARCH: FIRE

>DENIED

//

Iris was just about ready to break her computer. After several attempts, she still hadn’t managed to get even a little way into the military database. The network was too secure for her, seeming to shift and change every time she thought she got close. Whatever was in there, she wasn’t going to be able to reach it anytime soon.

Of course, this meant there was only one thing left to do: call a better hacker, namely Felicity. Felicity Smoak was a genius at these types of things (and pretty much everything else), and always able to worm her way into any and every system. Iris still wasn’t convinced her friend didn’t have some kind of supernatural ability for these things.

“Hey, Iris! Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve heard from you,” Felicity said when she picked up the phone.

“Hey, it had been. We should catch up sometime, but I’m calling because I need a favour,” Iris asked. She felt a little bad for being out of contact with her friend for so long, and vowed to make more of an effort, even if there was usually 600 miles between them.

“What with?” Felicity replied, not missing a beat.

“Military records.”

“Wow. What for?”

“It’s about a dead girl. I need information.”

“Sure, easy stuff. I’ll do it for you now, but we’ll go over it later too.”

“Thanks so much. I owe you for this, seriously.”

“No worries. You got a name?”

“Harriett Parker.”

“Give me an hour,” Felicity replied confidently. Iris didn’t question it.

//

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: 12248b4@silentmail.com

Subject: Files

Date: 20 July 2014

Attachments: (19048-67838.pdf, 1957568-4747.pdf)

Hey! Here it is. Only took me 47 this time. A new record :) I’ve found a bit more, but this is the most relevant stuff. The rest is more of the same, but this looked interesting.

//

**TOP SECRET**

**THE JOINT CHEIFS OF STAFF**

**WASHINGTON, D.C**

OFGR-907-58

28 MAY 2014

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

       Subject: Project Genesis Budget

 

In light of the recent developments, subject #27CQ05 is responding well to the treatments, however, instability in subjects #17HV87 and #10GB79 have been noted.

Request further finds to continue to monitor subjects.

NW#: 23598

Doc ID: 29572610

//

**MEDICAL REPORT**

**S.T.A.R LABS**

 

PATIENT: Parker, Harriett    ID: 27CQ05

D.O.B: 8.15.1991

HEIGHT: 5’6”

WEIGHT: 146lbs

DOCTOR: H. Wells

CURRENT DOSAGE: 5mg/daily

 

 

NOTES:

Subject continues to respond well to the treatments, however, there is the potential for instability regarding previous trials. Recommend stage two trials.  

//

_THE TRUTH REVEALED?_

7/28/2014 @ 19:34

Posted by: ReportingWest

When I started this investigation, I wasn’t sure what I was looking for. I knew there was _something_ out there, but what I found was so much more than I ever thought.

I don’t know how much I can say now, but I promise it’s something that will change this city, maybe even the world. I don’t know when I can post this; I need time to make sure they can’t find me. I know they’re going to try.

But what I can give you now is this: Harriett Parker, Yolanda Nelson, Wally Greene, Kelly Hanson, and Veronica Caine. Those are just a few of the names I found on my search. All you need to do is look, and you’ll find the answers. 

-ReportingWest

COMMENTS (34)

Art73 (July 28 at 19:45)

This is such bullshit. You’re making all of this up.

Paper_Heart_410 (July 28 2014 at 19:49)

I can’t wait for it! Honestly, I’ve been following this blog since the beginning and I’m really excited for this. You’re going to be great, Iris.

Julie15 (July 28 2014 at 19:50)

I’ll check those names, like you said. This is so intense. How is this real life?? Anyone else feel like that?

Quinn_90 (July 28 2014 at 19:55)

I looked those names up and holy shit. I can't believe I've never seen this before. It's so obvious now. 

Betty-B (July 28 2014 at 20:00)

I knew a girl called Victoria Caine. She was a lovely girl, though I moved away from that area for a while.  I haven’t seen her since. I hope she’s not the one that died. Vickie was such a lovely girl!

  Reply from: ReportingWest (July 28 2014, 18:24)

  Can you tell me more about her? Email me, please.

    Reply from: Betty-B (July 15 2014 at 18:26)

    I sure can!

Marilla-J28 (July 28 at 19:53)

I looked into this, like you said, and oh my god!! I can’t believe it. This is all seriously fucked up.

(See more comments)

//

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: Betty.Brandon@mail.com

Subject: Vicky

Date: July 29 at 2:53pm

 

Hey ReportingWest,

I'm not sure I can tell you much about Vicky, but I knew her from around the place. She was a quiet girl, and rarely home. I do remember she kept odd hours. Always up at all hours and I remember once she got into a fight with someone. It was a military man, I think, and he nearly ran me over in the hall.

Good luck,

Betty

//

“Any luck on the Parker files?” Barry asked hopefully when he met up with Cisco and Caitlin. 

“Nothing, sorry dude,” Cisco replied, sighing at his computer. “I tried, but they have got some _serious_ security there. It’s practically Fort Knox. ”

“I’ve tried calling too, but they’re keeping with the lockdown,” Caitlin added. “I don’t get it.”

“Me either, but at least we’re sure they’re hiding something,” Barry said. “We just need to find a way in.”

“I’m sure we will. There’s got to be _someone_ out there who knows something and will talk. There always is.”

Strangely, Barry found himself thinking of the Jitter’s worker he’d met in the apartment complex. He hadn’t called her, but her contact was saved in his personal phone. She was attractive, sure, but he wasn’t sure what to do about her. Would it be a conflict of interest, if he got involved? After all, she knew some of the tenants in the building. He then wondered how well she might’ve known Harriett Parker. There was the possibility she’d been lying about her reasons of being there. He’d thought of that before, but there hadn’t exactly been time to follow it up yet. Barry figured he’d look into it, but the thought didn’t sit well with him. Maybe Iris knew something – or only thought she didn’t. People picked up on things they didn’t quite remember often enough.

“There’s the waitress,” he found himself saying. Cisco and Caitlin looked at him, surprised.

“What waitress?”

“I met her in the apartment complex. She was just there for a friend, though. Not the only person I met there.”

“Maybe she knew Harriett?”

“I don’t think so,” Barry replied. “But there could be something there.”

“Did you get a name?” Cisco asked.

“Iris,” he replied.

“No last name?”

Barry shook his head, suddenly feeling stupid. “But I have her number.”

Cisco raised his eyebrows. Caitlin looked unamused.

“Hey, she gave it to me,” Barry replied.

“Well, call her. Maybe she knows more than she’s letting on,” Caitlin said, surprising Barry.

“I don’t know,” Barry said. 

“Or not, but we’ll really need to start compiling a list of suspects soon. How much was in the old file?”

“Not much,” Barry admitted. “The investigation was closed.”

“No suspects?” Cisco asked.

“None,” Barry said “There was reference to a man showing up around the apartment, but nobody could find him.”

“He might have been military,” Cisco said. “We already know they were involved with Harriett.”

“There’s no way to prove that,” Caitlin said.

“Think about it for a minute, I mean, did you read that witness statement? Dude shows up late one night talking about some ‘project’ and then the girl goes up in smoke? Cannot be a coincidence.”

“There could be something to it,” Barry admitted. “We’ve worked with less before.”

Caitlin sighed. “Fine, but don’t blame me if this all goes wrong. I said this was a bad idea.”

//

Later that night, Barry found himself desperately googling Harriett Parker’s name, wondering there might have been something he’d missed. There had to be, if not here, then somewhere.

After sifting through the numerous social media results, Barry found a link to a blog with the title ReportingWest. It was strange it was even mentioned. People had been doing a lot to keep the investigation quiet, though Barry hadn’t been given many answers why. The blog was _a lot_ more than expected. The first entry was a general exposé on the accident itself, though the blogger was certainty not shy about their suspicions about Harriett’s death. Not to mention he saw the photos – photos nobody should have. They were clearly different from the ones he’d seen through the department, but they were definitely legitimate.

He felt a little sick.

Somebody had been there, gotten inside the investigation and nobody noticed. Who was this ReportingWest, and how had they gotten into this?

Barry checked the bio. It was, as suspected, extremely brief:

_A reporter looking for the real stories. Central City_

No age, or even a clear idea of whoever this person was. Barry scanned the entries before the Harriett Parker case, but found nothing. They were all simplistic news reports on things going on the city – Harrison Wells and his famous S.T.A.R Labs, the mayoral elections and other briefs about stories involving murders and other crime in central city. There had been a few less-than-legal photos there too, but no mention of how ReportingWest had gotten inside the crime scenes.

Barry scrolled back to through the Harriett Parker entries, surprised at how quickly the story had been put together. In fact, this blogger seemed to already be one step ahead, if the latest entry was anything to go by.

A name caught his eye – Yolanda Nelson.

That couldn’t be a coincidence. Whoever this was, they were the real deal.

Barry hesitated over the email address for a moment, before copying it and pasting it into a new email through one of his alias emails. Was this a good idea?

Without any further hesitation, he began to type.

//

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: theflash@mail.com

Subject: Harriett Parker

Date: Jul 30 at 10:04pm

Hey, I saw your blog, and I know what you’re looking for. Can we meet? I’m, in Central City.

 

To: theflash@mail.com

From: admin@reportingwest.com

Subject: RE: Harriett Parker

Date: Jul 30 at 10:23pm

I can’t meet you. People not knowing my identity is important. But if you’ve got information, I’ll take it some other way.

 

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: theflash@mail.com

Subject: RE: Harriett Parker

Date: Jul 30 at 10:25pm

I really need to see you. This isn’t something I can do over the Internet. People are watching.

 

To: theflash@mail.com

From: admin@reportingwest.com

Subject: Re: Harriett Parker

Date: Jul 30 at 10:29pm

I can’t. The secret identity thing is important here. If you don’t give me something solid, I’ll block you.

 

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: theflash@mail.com

Subject: A better offer

Date: Jul 30 at 10:30pm

Well, I know the Yolanda Nelson case. I’ve got information that hasn’t even made it into the records outside of the FBI.

 

To: theflash@mail.com

From: admin@reportingwest.com

Subject: Re: A better offer

Date: Jul 30 at 10:32pm

If I wanted that, I could get it. You’re going to have to do better. I’m not wasting my time on a throwaway. Besides, how do I know I could trust you?

 

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: theflash@mail.com

Subject: A matter of trust

Date: Jul 30 at 10:40pm

I’m just looking for the same things as you are. I think we could do well to partner up.

 

To: theflash@mail.com

From: admin@reportingwest.com

Date: Jul 30 at 10:41pm

Subject: Re: A matter of trust

I don’t want to. You’re not getting this story.

 

To: admin@reportingwest.com

From: theflash@mail.com

Date: Jul 30 at 10:45pm

Subject: Re: A matter of trust

I don’t want the story. I just want to be able to help the people that have been hurt by the same people that hurt Harriett.

 

To: theflash@mail.com

From: admin@reportingwest.com

Subject: Re: A matter of trust

Date: Jul 30 at 10:48pm

I’m still not talking to you. How do I know you’re not a cop or something? You could be out to get me. I’m not taking that risk. Don’t try to email me again, not unless you have something worth my time.

//

To: 56376@anonmail.com

From: 3574789b@anonmail.com

Subject: Weather

Date: July 31 at 5:20am

There’s a possible storm coming. We’ll need to contain it. I’m not risking another one of those shit-all messes like Portland. We need to prepare.

 

To: 3574789b@anonmail.com

From: 56376@anonmail.com

Subject: Re: Weather

Date: July 31 at 5:28am

We’ll terminate our plans then. That seems to be the best course of action. Stop the shit from hitting the fan.

//

“Dude, did you sleep at all last night?” Cisco commented when Barry walked in that morning.

“I think I did?” he replied. “But don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. I can just get a cup from the kitchen.”

“No, none of that instant stuff. You’re going in for the real deal,” Cisco said and shoved a ten dollar bill at him. “Go to Jitters.”

Barry squinted at the money. “Are you sure?” he said.

“Take it. Consider it an act of charity, because dude, you look like death.”

Barry took the cash. “Fine.”

“Seriously, go all-out. We need you actually _alive_ for this thing, y’know and the coffee here sucks.”

“Alright, I’m out, but you’re telling me everything you’ve found when I get back.”

“I promise, now go get some coffee. Also, maybe actually _talk_ to that waitress.”

Barry rolled his eyes, but walked out. He wasn’t going to give into Cisco’s teasing there. Besides, it wasn’t like he was interested in Iris. Nope. Sure, she was attractive, but that didn’t mean he was actually interested. This was about the coffee.

However, when he got to Jitters, Barry instantly sought out Iris and felt a little happier at having spotted her at the register, chatting politely to a customer.

 He walked right up, ignoring the way his heart tripped in his chest like he was fifteen and awkward all over again.

“Hey,” Iris said brightly when it was his turn to order.

“Hi, Iris,” Barry replied.

“So, what can I get you today?” Iris asked.

“Coffee – as strong and large as you can make it.”

“Sure thing,” she said. “That’ll be six-fifty.”

Barry handed over the money. “Thanks,” he said. “Also, one more thing – do you mind talking with me later?”

“Well sure,” Iris said with a smile. “You have my number.”

“Oh, yeah, I do,” Barry replied as a blush crept onto his cheeks. “I’ll call you later.”

As he walked back, Barry thought about the blogger he’d emailed last night. They’d been particularly evasive, and he wondered who exactly this person could be. It could be another police officer, but Barry didn’t think it was likely. Whoever this was, they were too well versed in the art of staying anonymous online. He’d tried a few of the basic tricks Cisco had taught him after the emails had stopped, but he hadn’t been able to get into any of ReportingWest’s accounts or anything. 

He wondered what exactly this person had to hide. Maybe they were actually close to the heart of whatever was going on. Or it could just be someone who was clever enough to look in the right places, like the blogger claimed.

When he walked back into the office, Cisco was back at the computer, typing away. Caitlin had arrived and was going through the paperwork again, scanning any and all documents relating to Harriett Parker.

“So, I think I have something,” Barry announced. His friends looked up from their work.

“What is it?” Cisco asked.

“There’s a blogger – someone small time, but people are paying attention and whoever they are, they’ve gotten information on Harriett.”

“You trust them?” Caitlin said.

“They mentioned Yolanda by name,” Barry replied. “I don’t think that’s the mark of someone who’s lying.”

“Give me the URL,” Cisco asked and Barry read it off. Caitlin moved closer to the computer. The room went silent as they read the posts.

“I don’t believe it,” Caitlin said, shaking her head.

“This shit is _intense_ ,” Cisco said.

“Can you track them?” Barry asked. “I tried contacting them last night, but they didn’t want to talk.”

“Journalists,” Cisco said with a snort. “But, no problem.”

An hour later, he’d had about as much luck as Barry had the night before.

“We need to find this person,” Cisco said resolutely on the fifteenth failed attempt.

“Agreed,” Caitlin replied. “But how?”

“Draw them out, somehow. There’s got to be something that’ll make them come out of hiding.”

//

It didn’t take Iris long to work out she’s being followed. She’d had plenty of self-defence lessons in her life to know when things weren’t quite right.  The streets around this time were usually pretty empty, with most people already done for the day and back at home. She’d had the late shift tonight, meaning she’d been there cleaning up along with Janet and Greg, a couple of the other employees.

She couldn’t quite tell who was following her, only that they were somewhere behind her, and looking back would’ve made it too obvious, so she carried on. However, instead of leading them back to her apartment, she let them back through the streets, hoping to throw them off.

Iris pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders and reached carefully into the pocket of her jacket for the pepper spray she kept in there. She knew it was probably a little overkill, but she figured it would be better safe than sorry, especially considering her recent activities.

She wondered if this might be someone who was in on Harriett Parker. It wasn’t totally out of the realm of possibility, especially considering what she’d found out. There had to be people watching and maybe they’d been able to crack through her servers. Felicity had them wrapped up pretty tight, but there was always a chance someone had found a way in.

 _Maybe I’m just being paranoid_ , Iris thought, but dismissed the idea. There was too much at stake here for just to be anyone. Someone had to have found her.

Considering her options, Iris began to walk slower and moved away from the road that led back to her apartment. At least if she couldn’t loose the tail now, she could at leats keep them away from her home (hopefully they hadn’t figured that out already, but Iris didn’t want to risk it).

Her stalker moved with her, always just a little out of sight. Iris felt her heart rate pick up as she moved through the city, all too conscious of how late it was getting. There had to be some way to ditch this guy quickly. Taking a turn back towards the nearest bus stop, Iris kept an eye on the windows of the passing buildings, trying to catch a glimpse of whoever was following her. The most she saw was the flash of the same jacket over and over again. They were obviously trying to go for unnoticeable, but Iris wouldn’t be half as good at journalism if she weren’t one for the details.

 _I think I’m being followed_ , Iris quickly texted Felicity, just to have a record of what was going on. 

 _Is there anything I can do?_ Felicity texted back almost immediately.

 _Don’t think so. I’m just making sure someone knows,_ Iris texted and slid her phone back into her pocket. Her hands were shaking, but she kept moving onwards. She wasn’t going to let her stalker know just how freaked out she was right now.

Turning down another street, Iris swore when she saw how empty it was. She picked up her pace and moved onwards, hoping her stalker wouldn’t make a move. Maybe this was one of those surveillance things. The thought didn’t make her feel much better.

As she moved down the street, Iris suddenly felt a weight slam into her side and a hand drag her sideways down an alleyway. She tried to let out a scream, but her attacker put a hand over her mouth. She bit him, but tall she tasted was rough leather.  

“Stay quiet,” a male voice commanded. Iris froze, considering her options. She was obviously smaller than whoever had grabbed her, though that wasn’t necessarily a disadvantage.

Iris tried to throw all her weight down on the man’s foot, but he didn’t budge. She tried again, this time attempting to elbow him or knock him off-balance, but he stood firm.

“You’re not going to make me let go, so just cooperate with me and it’ll all be fine soon,” the man said firmly. His voice was eerily smooth, which only served to further her discomfort.

Iris shook her head emphatically. There was no way she was going to simply surrender here.

“Hey!” another voice called out and Iris almost sagged in relief when she recognised it as Agent Allen’s. The man swore and abruptly let go. Iris nearly fell over but righted herself against the wall. She leaned against it for a long moment, centring herself with the feel of cool brick under her fingers.

“Thank God,” she breathed.

“Are you okay?” Agent Allen asked.

“I’m fine,” Iris replied as calmly as possible, eyes closed so she wouldn’t just suddenly burst into tears.

“What happened with that guy?”

“He was following me. I took a little detour on my way home so he wouldn’t see where I lived.”

“Do you want me to take you to the police station?” Agent Allen asked. “I don’t have a car with me, but I can walk with you.”

“Sure,” Iris replied. “Thanks.”

“It’s no problem,” he said. “I was on my way back there anyway to collect some files.”

They walked together in silence after that, and Iris was grateful for it. The quiet gave her time to think about what happened and relax a little. Sure, she still felt incredibly shaken, but she was slowly starting to come back to herself and her mind started to pick apart the details of the situation and think. Who could that guy have been? The way he’d talked, it was like he knew who she was. Could this have been related to Harriett Parker? It couldn't have been a coincidence.

She glanced over at Agent Allen, wondering if he’d be of any sort of help to her. Of course, she did realise that admitting anything would make him aware of her illegal activities. And there was no way she’d risk jail time, especially considering the fact her father was a police officer. Though she wasn’t a kid anymore, she knew he’d probably kill her for doing it anyway, despite her intentions.

Telling the FBI, she reasoned, was probably a bad idea. Besides, all this really meant no was that she’d have to get Felicity to update her firewalls and add a few extra layers of security. And maybe be a little more careful in regards to her investigative activity. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d had her safety compromised for the sake of an investigation, but then again, she hadn’t quite found a story this big before.

 _Maybe I’m in over my head_ , she thought grimly as she and Agent Allen arrived at the police station. Iris hoped her father wouldn't be in.

"Iris!" Joe West said when she walked inside, rushing up to her. Iris internally cursed. Sure, she loved her father, but he wasn't exactly aware of what she'd been doing as an investigative reporter. He'd been extremely over-protective when she was younger, though he'd lent off it a bit after she'd moved out and grown up some. But if he found out what she'd been doing, it'd be like she was fifteen all over again.

"I'm fine dad," Iris replied, waving away his concern. "Just a little shaken up."

Joe turned to Barry. "What happened?"

"Wannabe mugger. Don't worry - she's fine," Barry said calmly.

Joe looked like he wanted to argue, but then Eddie Thawne showed up.

"I can take your statement, Iris," he said. "Joe, you have work to do on that Green case."

Joe seemed satisfied at that. "I'll drive you home," he said to Iris before going back to his desk. She didn't argue that point, mostly because she didn't exactly want to be alone tonight.

"Thanks, Dad," she said as she followed Eddie into the interview room.

//

 

LOCATION: Central City Police Department

DATE: 8-01-2014

TIME: 9:53 P.M.

CASE #: 3786G-39H

NAME (last, first, MI): West, Iris

 

[BEGIN TRANSCRIPT]

Dt. Thawne: State your full name for the record

Iris West: Iris West

Dt. Thawne: So, Miss West, tell me about the events of tonight.

Iris West: I was walking home from my job at Jitters, when I noticed someone was following me. Once I did, I made sure to walk away from my home, because I didn’t want them to discover where I lived. I’d hoped to be able to lose them, but they kept following me. Eventually, they caught up to me and grabbed me.

Dt. Thawne: Did he say anything to you at this point?

Iris West: Yes. He told me to be quiet, and then when I tried to break free of his grip, he told me that I couldn’t make him let go and that if I cooperated with him, it would quote “all be fine soon” unquote. It was about then that Agent Allen showed up. He yelled out and my stalker ran off.

Dt. Thawne: Can you describe this person?

Iris West: A man, about six feet in height, wore a plain black jacket with a hood and gloves. I didn’t get a good look at his face.

Dt. Thawne: Is there anything else you can tell us? Any enemies you might have had?

Iris West: I don’t think so. (Pause) I just work at Jitters.

Dt. Thawne: Thanks, Miss West. That’s all.

[END TRANSCRIPT]

//

Barry isn’t sure what bothers him about Iris’s statement, but it’s something. He reads over the transcript again before he leaves to get coffee the next day. He’d nearly tried to call her, but he didn’t think she’d pick up. Besides, he felt better about a face-to-face approach. Maybe her body language could tell him something her words weren’t.

Thankfully, Iris was working when he arrived at Jitters – he saw her by the register again, refilling the straw dispenser. Barry made a beeline for her.

“Hey, can we talk?” he asked her.

“What for?” Iris asked, an edge to her voice.

“Just about what happened last night,” he said calmly.

“You’ve read the report.”

“But I don’t think you told Detective Thawne everything.”

Iris pursed her lips. “I didn’t lie.”

“I’m not saying you did. I’d just like to go over a few details, and talk to you about what you know about the people in the Doggett Road apartments.”

“I don’t have to talk to you, do I?”

“No, but I’d still like to hear what you know,” he said honestly.

Iris regarded him for a second. There was something nervous about her demeanour.

“I just want to talk, nothing more,” Barry said, hoping to get her at ease.

Iris didn’t seem entirely convinced, but she nodded anyway. “Okay then, I can do talking. Not right now though, but after my shift ends.”

“I can do that,” Barry replied and pulled a card out of his pocket. “Call the number on here and I’ll meet you here?”

“Sure,” Iris said, taking the card. She still looked a little wary, but she’d said yes. He hoped she’d end up following through with it. Even if it turned out she didn’t know much at all, he’d take whatever he could at this point; anything to keep the investigation going.

//

“So… who was that?” Janet asked, leaning against the counter. Iris rolled her eyes at her co-worker.

“Nobody important,” Iris replied as she went back to work with the straw dispenser.

“He doesn’t look like nothing – kind of cute.”

“Don’t you have a girlfriend?” Iris said with a frown. She didn't think she'd heart Janet talk about anyone else but Lenore.

“I’m Bisexual,” Janet replied. “Besides, I can look. Are you interested?”

Iris rolled her eyes. “You should get back to work.”

“So you are interested,” Janet continued.

Iris didn’t dignify that with a response. Janet wouldn’t quit with it, even if Iris denied it, so it was better to just say nothing. Besides, she would be lying if she said she wasn’t at least a little interested. Agent Allen was pretty cute, even if it was part of the FBI.

She wondered what exactly she’d tell him. Could she be honest? Or would it be better to lie her way around it, to make up some other fantastical story that would get him off her back? Maybe. But then she started to think about Harriett Parker. What use was all this information, this story, if she didn’t try to make sure justice was served? Maybe she wasn’t going to tell Barry anything he didn’t already know, but there was a chance he was a lot more lost on it than she was. There could be a lot of good in telling him. Maybe she’d be able to help people.

The thought did have an appeal.

 _Alright, honesty it is_ , she told herself, _but only if he asks the right questions_. There was no way she was going to say anything without being sure he was competent at his job.

The rest of her shift passed surprisingly quickly, though not without further prodding from Janet about Agent Allen. Once she’d clocked out, Iris sent a quick text to the number on the card and waited. To pass time until Agent Allen would arrive, she jotted down a few notes on her phone and shot a quick text to Felicity to let her know what was up.

_I’m going to tell the FBI guy the truth_

_Can you trust him?_ Felicity texted back almost instantly.

 _I think I can. He helped me out last night._ Iris replied.

_Good, but I can check him out for you. Name? Badge Number?_

_Agent Allen. I don’t know his first name,_ Iris texted back and added the string of numbers and letters on the call card.

 _I’ll look him up now; FBI shouldn’t be too hard to crack_.

Iris smiled at her phone, glad she had someone like Felicity in her life. She wasn’t sure what she’d do without her, especially in times like this.

She looked up and saw Agent Allen walk in. He smiled when he spotted her and walked over.

“Hey,” he said. “You still in for this?”

“Of course,” Iris replied. “Let’s go.”

“I’ll take you back to the office, if you don’t mind? It’s preferable to somewhere public,” Agent Allen said as they moved out of Jitters. 

Iris nodded in agreement. “I thought you worked out of the police department?”

“Sometimes, but there is sensitive information being passed around, so we need a more private location to do most of our work,” Agent Allen explained.

“That does make sense,” she said, noting the way Agent Allen said we instead of I. So, he wasn't alone here.

They lapsed back into silence as Agent Allen guided her back to his office. Unsurprisingly, the building didn’t look like anything much, just another of the dozens of office buildings in the area.

“And here we are,” Agent Allen said and opened the front door. Inside, it looked just as ordinary as the outside – a set of lifts and a desk with a receptionist looking bored as she typed away on her keyboard. Agent Allen smiled at her and directed Iris towards the lift.

They went up three floors, and when the doors opened to the space, Iris was a little surprised at what was inside. It didn’t look like any normal office. Instead, there were several computers and a strange set of machines. There were also a couple people inside too – a woman with pale skin a long strawberry blonde hair dressed in a neat suit, and an olive skinned man with chin-length black hair and a graphic tee. They looked up as she walked in.

“You bought company,” the man said, looking back and forth between Iris and Agent Allen. “But no coffee.”

“This is business,” Agent Allen replied.

“Coffee would’ve been nice,” the woman said, flipping through a stack of papers.

“Iris, these are my partners, Agents Snow and Ramon,” Barry replied, gesturing towards the woman and the man respectively. “They’re working with me on this case, amongst others.”

“We’ve been stuck together for a while now, you mean,” Agent Ramon said with a smile. “In this little division.”

“It’s a department,” Agent Snow corrected.

“Department?” Iris said with a frown.

“I’ll explain in a moment,” Agent Allen replied. “There’s a lot we need to get through here.”

“Sure,” Iris replied, suddenly feeling a little wary. What were these people?

Agent Allen led her into a room with a table and two chairs on either side. Iris sat down in one and wondered if she should shoot off another text to Felicity. 

“So, what was it that you weren’t telling the police?” Agent Allen asked.

“You’re really not starting slow here,” Iris observed.

“I’m sorry, but answers are important. We may be running out of time.”

“Tell me about this department first,” Iris said. She wanted answers before she was going to give anything.

“I work with more unusual cases, especially those that have been closed without definitive answers. My department is exploring alternative avenues with these cases in an attempt to give them proper rest. We’re known colloquially as The X-Files.”

Iris frowned. The name seemed familiar, but she couldn’t quite put a finger on it. “You said alternative avenues?”

“That would be paranormal ones,” Agent Allen explained.

“So you think this is something inhuman? Like an alien or something?” Iris said sceptically. It sounded so ridiculous to her, that there were real live FBI agents running around looking for aliens.

“I think it’s worth looking into.”

“How are you so sure it wasn’t just a fire? They happen all the time.”

“I think if you believed that you wouldn’t be here.”

“What are you saying?” Iris asked.

“Did you friends in Harriett’s building say anything to you about her work?”

“I didn’t really ask about the people living in the building,” Iris replied. It wasn’t exactly a lie. She’d actually gotten Felicity to look into it, though nobody in the building seemed at all suspicious. Everything was completely ordinary, or if it wasn’t, it was buried deep.

“But you know something?” Agent Allen asked.

“There could be,” Iris said carefully. “My friends might have said something.”

“Is Harriet Parker the reason you were followed?”

 _Well, he’s asking the right questions_ , Iris thought. “Yes,” she said out loud. “That’s part of it.”

“Then what’s all of it?”

“I run a blog,” Iris began before Agent Allen cut her off.

“You’re ReportingWest?” he asked, eyes wide.

“Yes,” Iris said simply. "That's me."

“What can you tell me about Harriet Parker’s death, and those other ones?” Agent Allen asked all in a rush.

“That’s pretty heavy info.”

“I need to hear it. It’s critical for the investigation,” Agent Allen replied. “I could arrest you for obstruction of justice, amongst other things.”

“You won’t,” Iris said. “You need me to keep doing what I do.”

“Are you going to tell me or not?”

“There’s more I need to find out,” Iris replied. “But it’s coming together. And for the record, you don't need to make threats.”

“What have you got?” Barry asked, going a little red.

Iris took a deep breath. Was she really going to do this? “They did something to Harriett – others too, I think.”

Agent Allen frowned. “Did what to them?”

“I haven’t found the first documents, but it seems Harriett was a part of a trial. A Project Genesis.”

“What kind of things did they do?” Agent Allen asked.

“I don’t know – but it has something to do with that fire. There are things I haven’t been able to find yet. The military keeps things locked up tightly.”

“But you know how to get in?”

“Something like that,” Iris said, not sure she was ready to give away Felicity on this.

“Are you the one writing the blog?”

“What?” Iris asked, caught off guard.

“What you know, is this what you were planning to release on your blog?”

“What blog?”

“ReportingWest. It’s in the name,” Agent Allen said. “I should have seen it sooner.”

Iris sighed. “Yes. That’s my blog. I assume you’re ‘The Flash’?” she asked, recalling the anonymous emails she’d gotten.

"Yes," Barry replied. 

"Then you're one to talk, offering FBI secrets," Iris said. 

Agent Allen smiled sheepishly. “I had to try,” he said.

“Well, you have me now,” she said. It felt strange to have such a conversation so openly, especially with an FBI agent. “But I’m not going to say anything else until I can be assured you’re on the right side here.”

“I’ll do everything I can to make sure the right people are locked up,” Agent Allen replied.

“Barry!” Agent Snow called from the door. “You need to see this.”

Agent Allen—Barry, apparently—looked up. “Sorry, we’ll have to continue this conversation later.”

“I’m staying here with you. You want what I have? I’m in this.”

Barry looked between her and the door. “Alright, I can work something out, but we’re going to continue this conversation,” he said.

Feeling decently satisfied, Iris followed Barry out of the room. Agent Snow was waiting for them outside, looking worried.

“What is it, Caitlin?”

“There’s some anomalies the toxicology. I didn’t think I’d find anything in Harriett’s body – but there’s  _something_  there.”

“What kind of something?” Iris cut in.

Agent Snow – Caitlin – looked back and forth between Barry and Iris, a small frown creasing her eyes. Barry nodded at her and she relaxed.

“It was some kind of artificial substance. There’s not much of it – barely a trace, but it’s something.”

“Can you work out what it is?”

Caitlin frowned. “I’m not sure,” she replied. “I’ll need to run my own tests here. I don’t think it’s safe for just anyone to know.”

Iris didn’t miss the pointed look at her. “I’m not going to say anything,” Iris replied.

Barry looked at her thoughtfully. “Maybe you should.” Caitlin glared at him. “What? People need to know about this and we can’t just deal with it ourselves.”

“We’re Federal agents. Of course we should deal with it.”

“If we do, then what? It’s going to be like every other case we’ve solved – swept under the rug and forgotten about. People deserve to know this.”

Caitlin looked deeply uncomfortable. “I don’t like this,” she said.

“I agree with Barry,” Agent Ramon cut in. “The people should know.”

“If we leak this information, then what?” Caitlin asked. “We’d be shut down, or worse.”

“I don’t have to reveal my sources,” Iris said.

“We should go for it,” Agent Ramon cut in. Iris looked at him; she was surprised he’d been paying attention. He’d looked pretty deeply focused on whatever he’d been typing. “I’ve been looking into things, and it doesn’t look like anyone is going to do anything unless we force them too.”

“I don’t think that’s rational, Cisco,” Caitlin said. “I’m sorry, but we’d be putting ourselves at risk here. There’s too much we need to do.”

“We do that anyway, Caitlin,” Barry added, looking at her meaningfully. Iris wondered about the history between these three; how they’d managed to get to this point, investigating things that weren’t supposed to exist. How hard had it been to do what they were doing?

“I know, but this is reckless. We can’t blow it for one case.”

“There’s more than one,” Iris cut in. “I’ve looked into it, and there’s more deaths like Harriett’s – not all of them are the same, but they’re just as unusual. I believe they’re related.”

Caitlin looked a little surprised, as did Cisco. Barry seemed to be the only one who wasn’t, but then again, he’d read her blog already.

“How many?” Caitlin asked.

“At least twenty – more even, if we consider how tricky the military can be. For all the ones we’ve found, how many more are there out there that we didn’t?” she asked them. The question had kept Iris up more than once, when she’d been looking through all those records.

The others all looked a little grim at the thought. Iris prayed it was enough to sway Caitlin to the cause. She did understand the concern, but Iris believed this was more important than the worries. She’d be careful, and make sure none of it tied back to any of them. If necessary, she’d take the fall, but Iris hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

“Fine,” Caitlin said finally. “We’ll do it.”

//

Report By (S.A) J. Reyes

‘Yolanda Nelson’

As of today (October 20th, 1993), the Yolanda Nelson case has been closed. No suspects were found, nor arrests made.

After investigating the potential leads and evidence, I conclude this investigation and unless new evidence comes to light, there will be no further inquires into the matter.

Signed,

Special Agent John Reyes 

//

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 2m

Traffic Report: City-bound freeway delays. More here: cent.rl/5n237

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 23s

Harrison Wells Exclusive Interview: cent.rl/8v249

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 12s

Mayor discusses election campaign: cent.rl/6u535

//

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

TO: ALL STAFF

FROM: Gen. W. Eiling

RE: Confidentiality

All personnel involved in Project Genesis should be reminded about the confidentiality agreement that was signed during your employment process, which dictates the absolute silence on all matters related to this work. Noncompliance with this will result in immediate termination and legal action.

//

To: 56376@anonmail.com

From: 3574789b@anonmail.com

Subject: Re: Weather

Date: August 2 at 8:43am

Regarding the memo, I think we need to take better action. The situation is getting unstable. Keep your eyes out for any potential upsets.

 

To: 3574789b@anonmail.com

From: 56376@anonmail.com

Subject: Re: Weather

Date: August 2 at 8:50am

Agreed. We need to proceed carefully here and I’ll assign our best to the matter. The storm will pass.

//

Barry isn’t sure how surprised he should be that the entire investigation is suddenly moving a whole lot faster with the information from Iris. The details she had as well as the meticulous research were an invaluable resource. He wasn’t sure how long the investigation would’ve dragged out if not for her input.

However, he did wonder about the risks of doing this, especially considering Iris was just a civilian. She’d already gotten so close, and that had nearly killed her, so what would happen next? People were already watching, and if they were going to make a move, Barry knew things had to be done quickly. The only problem was that there was almost no time.

Iris had already found most of what they needed – fragments of information that even the most experienced FBI agents would have difficulty linking, but Iris West had somehow managed to put it almost into a complete picture. There were of course things that he knew that she hadn’t found, though he didn’t doubt she would’ve found it all on her own.

“How did you find all this stuff?” he asked her one day as they were sorting through old case files of the people Iris had mentioned.

“I looked,” she said simply. “Once I started, I noticed there were a lot of similar cases. I’m surprised nobody noticed before.”

“I think people were paid to not notice,” Barry replied. It made sense to think this, after all, there was someone out there making sure nobody looked too close. There was of course data missing and things unaccounted for in every case that Iris had found – little things mostly, that slipped under the radar. Things, that Barry suspected, were a lot more important than anyone else realised – emails not found, files missing, phone numbers never being recorded or witness statements strangely vague.

 “That seems likely,” Iris replied and pulled out another stack of files from the lot. Barry pretended not to watch her out of the corner of his eye. _Stay professional_ , he reminded himself. Sure, Iris was attractive, and perhaps one of the smartest people he’d met, but that didn’t mean he could just ask her out. He wasn’t here to make friends, or date.

 _Maybe, when this is all over,_ he thought to himself.

“I just hope we find what we need,” Barry said and picked through another file. A name stuck out at him. S.T.A.R Labs. Curiously, Barry read further on. Apparently the victim (a Kelly Hanson, aged 23) had been there several times in the past months, though there was no history of employment.

“S.T.A.R Labs, you got anything on them?” Barry asked Iris.

“Oh yeah, there was something about it in something a source sent to me,” Iris replied, ever careful to not mention exactly who or how she’d gotten her information. “They were part of the Project Genesis, whatever that is. Certain trials took place there, or at least, someone from there was a part of it.”

“Project Genesis?” Barry repeated. “You mentioned that before.”

“I haven’t found much on it, honestly. I’m surprised I even got the name, but I guess I shouldn’t doubt my sources,” she replied, a hint of pride in her voice.

“It does sound familiar,” Barry said. Ever since Iris had mentioned it when she came into the labs, he’d been thinking about it. He hadn’t been able to place it, but something about the words struck a cord in his mind.

“Do you remember from what?” Iris asked, her eyes were alight at the possibility of new information. It was a look Barry was starting to really like.

“I… a case from a few years back?” Barry said, and suddenly something clicked. “It was about the military, though I got kicked out of that one pretty fast as soon as it turned out it was one of their own. I tried to follow it up, but they talked about ‘internal investigations’ and refused to answer anything.”

“What happened?”

“A murder,” Barry recalled. “A man was suspected, but there was no proof he did anything, but when it turned out both he and the victim were military, the case was lost to me.”

“How did the victim die?”

“I think he was drowned, from memory. In a bathtub,” Barry said. “It was nasty.”

“Name?”

“Martin Stein,” Barry said. “He was a college professor.”

“How was he military?”

“Past, back when he was younger, though he'd apparently been some kind of consultant too,” Barry replied. “The suspect was still in, but apparently they’d served together at some point.”

“How did something like Project Genesis fit into that?”

“I saw it written somewhere,” Barry recalled. “On Stein’s desk, but I never got to see it again after the first time I was in there. It was gone.”

“You didn’t follow it up?”

“I thought it had gotten lost in amongst his stuff – everything was cleared out by then,” Barry said.

Iris frowned. “I wish I’d known about that,” she said.

“It was pretty classified after that. Even I couldn’t get into the case files.”

“You clearly weren’t trying hard enough,” Iris said, glancing at her phone.

“Are you going to get your source to look into this?”

“Maybe,” she replied, looking him in the eye. “Now that I know where to look.”

//

The Stein tip paid off. Iris was glad she’d lucked out on that one, truly. She’d have to thank Barry properly for that later.

“I can’t believe it,” Felicity had said when she’d called Iris back after she’d gotten the name Martin Stein. “This guy was _crazy_.”

“How so?”

“His stuff – that was something else. I mean, I’ve read a lot about this stuff, but hey, he was _intense_. There’s a whole thing about transmutation.”

“Am I supposed to know what that is?”

“No, but its essentially unzipping atoms and reworking them on a sub-atomic level by rebuilding them into new elements.”

“In English, please.”

“Rebuilding atoms – shape-shifting of sorts.”

“How’s that related to the Genesis stuff?”

“I haven’t found much, but it appears that Stein’s research was used at a certain point, but something didn’t work. They scrapped it, because they couldn’t get it to work – something from his research was missing.”

“He must have hidden it, knowing what it could do,” Iris said. She thought back to what Caitlin had found on Harriett’s body and wondered if this was somehow related. She made a mental note to bring it up the next time she saw Caitlin. 

“Maybe, it looked like interesting stuff,” Felicity said a little wistfully.

“You’re not going to try it.”

“I know I can’t,” Felicity said with a sigh.

Iris rolled her eyes. “Can you send me through the bit?”

“Sure thing,” Felicity replied. “I can send through the entire document, but it is over eight hundred pages.”

“You read all of that?”

“No, but I skimmed. I was gonna finish it later.”

“Sure. Just send me the bits I can use for now. Keep it simple.”

“Alright. Talk to you later.”

Iris hung up, feeling a little thrill at the prospect of new information. It was amazing how things had fallen into place so quickly after she’d started working with Barry. With better access to the files, though still probably somewhat illegal, she’d made so much more progress. And with this Martin Stein tip, everything was falling into place.  

She went back to her blog post, feeling a sense of excitement at every word typed. Though this wasn’t the first case she’d reported on, this was certainly the biggest. It was strange now, looking back at how far she’d come with this story. Harriett Parker had been something of a huge presence in her life, and Iris was reluctant to let her go.

Everything was ending, and Iris wasn’t sure how she’d go back to her life as it was. So much had happened during this investigation and she wanted it to go on – to uncover more mysteries out there that nobody wanted to pay attention to. She thought back to Barry’s X-Files, and the work he said he’d done. Though it sounded so fantastical at first, the more she thought about it, the more interested she’d become. And then considering the initial facts of this case - the strangeness of Harriett's death and the immaculate crime scene - it made sense to consider other possibilities. After all, how many more cases could've been solved if people had thought a little outside the box?

//

 **REPORTING WEST** @Report_West – Aug 9

The Truth, at last: bt.yl/G92n5 #HarriettParker

//

_THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE_

8/9/2015 @ 20:32

Posted by: ReportingWest

(note: here is the original post, if you want to start from the beginning)

Ever since I started this blog, my goal has been to find the truth. And here I am with it, even if you think it might sound impossible.

Harriett Parker's death, as well as those of the others I've mentioned in this post, were absolutely no accident. She was murdered, though not exactly how I first thought. This isn't the work of some mysterious serial killer, but something (not just someone) much more sinister:

Project Genesis. That’s what killed these people. As you’re probably unfamiliar with it, allow me to give you an overview:

Project Genesis is the military’s top-secret project designed to create the perfect solider – one that could be more than what any “normal” human could achieve. It’s been going on for years now, decades even. And all of this has been going on right under our noses in Central City.

Here is the full list of files that I’ve discovered that help pinpoint exactly what had been going on. It’s a long set, so be prepared to comb through it.

All those people I've mentioned, Harriett Parker, Yolanda Nelson, Wally Greene, Kelly Hanson, Veronica Caine, as well as countless more – though what I’ve found is an extensive list, I don’t think I’ll ever find out the true number. There’s a lot that paperwork like that can’t tell us. Some things, I’m sure, happened entirely off the record.

However, What I’ve found only scratches the surface of all of this. If this is what our military is doing, then can we trust them anymore? If they’re trying to turn people into some kind of super solider, then what else have they been doing? Is this the end of it?

Though it might seem like a noble cause, remember that countless people have  _died_  because of this. Harriett Parker was not alone in this. Don’t forget her, or what happened here. Silence in this matter is what gives the people who did this power. If nobody’s looking in the shadows, they’re free to do as they please – to hurt and kill people all for a selfish goal.

Don’t let them get away with this. The truth is out in the world now, and it’s up to you to make sure this is truth.

-ReportingWest

 

 COMMENTS (1,093)

Paper_Heart_410 (August 9 2014 at 20:58)

I haven’t read through all of the files yet, but wow. I can’t believe anyone would do something like this. Thanks so much for uncovering the truth.

Art73 (August 10 2014 at 17:36)

I don’t believe it. This has gotten to ridiculous. I’ve read through almost all of it, but I don’t see how we should be expected to believe this trash.

Betty-B (August 10 at 18:38)

And to think this what they did to Vicky. I feel sick.

Marvin-J18 (August 10 at 18:38)

This can’t be real life. The documents in this are clearly faked. I can’t wait for you to be proved wrong.

Anon_19 (August 11 at 0:23)

[Comment Removed by Admin]

(See more comments)

//

To: J.Balislan.74@3cnews.com

From: Betty.Brandon@mail.com

Subject: Re: That Blog

Date: August 18 at 2:53pm

Hey Jarred,

I think you should seriously look at that blog again. I know you think it’s rubbish, but you might change your mind now. There was an update today that got me thinking. After that post when they mentioned your Vicky, I knew I started to take it a little more seriously. The update today, however, I think you should brace yourself. It’s intense.

Please just look at it, or get someone to, because I think you’re going to want to read it.

Betty Brandon

//

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – Aug 20

BREAKING NEWS: Anonymous News Blogger exposes secret U.S military scandal: cent.rl/4c987 #HarriettParker

 **Wall Street Journal** @WSJ – Aug 21

Breaking: U.S military on.wsj.com/1YNV07n #HarriettParker

 **New York Times** @NYTimes – Aug 21

Anonymous Blogger Reveals Military Scandal: nyti.ms/9GNBVyn #HarriettParker

 **USA TODAY** @USATODAY – Aug 21

#BREAKING Military exposed by Anonymous Blogger usat.ly/5KP7vq

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – Aug 22

BREAKING NEWS: S.T.A.R Labs director Harrison Wells linked U.S military scandal: cent.rl/7b508 #HarriettParker

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 22m

Can we trust the military to protect us anymore? Experts weigh in: cent.rl/5n319 #HarriettParker

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – 15s

Military yet to comment on #HarriettParker scandal: cent.rl/2z491

 **CENTRAL CITY CITIZEN** @3CNews – Now

“The city is safer than ever!” Mayor speaks out against #HarriettParker case: cent.rl/3s827

//

 “So, you’re off now?” Iris asked.

“Yeah,” Barry replied, a little sadly, staring down into his coffee. Normally, he’d be feeling a lot more excited, but this case felt different, and not just because of the outrageous amount of paperwork or debriefings. Sure, he was glad that Harriett Parker had gotten justice, as well as all the other unfortunate victims of Project Genesis, but he still felt strange leaving this place behind.

 “More meetings?”

“Pretty much,” Barry replied with a sigh. “They’re sending me back to D.C, but everybody has questions, especially the new team.”

“New team?”

“They’re sending in other agents to investigate this further. Apparently my job’s done here.”

“That’s crazy,” Iris said with a frown.

“There’s not much I can do,” Barry said. “Besides, I think the best thing for me is to keep going with the X-Files and not get too wrapped up in this.”

“What next? Aliens?” she joked with a smile.

“Maybe,” Barry replied. “I have investigated extra-terrestrials before.”

Iris looked at him incredulously. “Seriously?”

“Yep,” he replied.

“You believe in that stuff?”

“I do,” he said. “There’s a lot we haven’t been able to explain, and what’s to say we’re alone in the universe? Something’s got to be out there.”

“You’re such a nerd,” Iris replied, though there was no malice behind her words, just affection.

Barry smiled at her. “So, what’s next for you?”

“I guess I’ll keep going,” Iris said with a shrug.

“You’re not sure?”

“I might need to change my game. They found me last time,” Iris replied. “I’m only lucky they were outed before they had a proper chance to get to me.”

“I think you should keep going,” Barry said honestly. “What you did was more than I could’ve done alone.”

Iris smiled at him brightly. “Thanks.”

There was a lapse in the conversation then, but it was a comfortable sort of silence.

So…” Barry began, trying to squash his nerves. “Maybe sometime we could hang out again? Like a date – maybe not right now, because obviously I’ll be in D.C, but sometime soon?”

Iris seemed surprised for a second. Barry wondered if he’d made the wrong call here. “Oh,” she said. “I was wondering when you’d ask me that.”

“Is that a yes or no? Because if it’s a no, we can forget this ever happened. Totally cool—”

“Yes. It’s a yes,” Iris said, cutting him off.

“Oh, good,” Barry replied. “That’s good. I wasn’t sure—”

“I already gave you my number. Besides, you’re pretty cute.”

Barry blushed. Iris laughed, a happy, bright sound. _I could get used to this_ , he thought, feeling elated.

Suddenly, his phone buzzed. It was a text from Cisco, reminding him of the files he needed to grab from the office. “Well, I should be going.”

“I’ll see you later then,” Iris said. “You better call me this time.”

“I promise,” Barry replied.

Iris smiled at him brightly, and leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll hold you to that."

//

_THE END?_

8/30/2014 @ 19:39

Posted by: ReportingWest

So, it's been a while, and I know you're all wondering what's going to happen to this blog. There are plenty of people out there who seem to think that I should just quit - that after this, there's nowhere else I can go. Others seem to think I should tell you my identity, as if that matters. But I can tell you right now that who I am beyond this blog doesn't matter. I could be anyone - a stranger on the street, your friend, co-worker or "famous" but none of that would change anything.

The thing that matters here is the Truth, whatever that might be. I know when I started this blog I expected nothing more than an outlet for my journalistic passions. But then I found the Harriett Parker case and I realised I couldn't just let myself be satisfied with reports of break-ins and the odd murder. I had to start digging deeper, and working to expose nastier truths no one was willing to speak.

For now, I plan to continue with this blog. It's already become bigger than me and stopping now wouldn't solve anything. I don't know exactly what's next, but I'll tell you when I find out.

-ReportingWest

 

COMMENTS (320)

Paper_Heart_410 (August 30 2014 at 19:45)

Good luck to you! I’ve really appreciated all your posts and you’ve done so much. I look forward to more.

Art73 (August 30 2014 at 19:46)

I feel like I should redact my earlier comments. There’s something you’ve done here, even if I was not the most receptive of people. Keep going with it.

Julie15 (August 30 at 19:48)

I’m so glad you’re going on with this!! Honestly, you’ve opened my eyes so much and I don’t think I can ever thank you enough.

TheFlash (August 30 at 19:49)

Glad to see you’re back in! I started following your work around the middle of this Harriett Parker thing, and I’m glad I did. There’s a lot of good you can do, and already have done with this. Good luck.

(See more comments)

//

 

[ ](http://tinypic.com?ref=2j1rm77)

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](http://agentalien.tumblr.com) or [livejournal.](http://bluesargently.livejournal.com)
> 
> Tumblr link for the art: [HERE](http://spaceboundtrout.tumblr.com/post/130700295455/art-accompanying-bluesargentlys-fic-believing)
> 
> Update: Tumblr Post w/ Graphic: [HERE](http://agentalien.tumblr.com/post/139104460964/the-flash-au-the-x-files-as-the-anonymous-blogger)


End file.
